BAIKUNTHPUR: A large number of villagers, including children, around Korea district headquarters in North Chhattisgarh are suffering from fluorosis- that cause deformities in children and elderly due to excessive fluoride content in ground water that these villages draw to drink.

Scores of residents of these villages, especially those in remote areas, are afflicted by fluoride contamination. While many elders have started showing symptoms of skeletal fluorosis that causes bones to become brittle and prone to fracture, many affected children have discolored teeth, a clear symptom of dental fluorosis.

State public health engineering department has installed treatment plants, solar pumps and reverse osmosis plants in many of the villages and townships and has plans to install more RO plants and solar pumps in different places of the district. However, a remote village that has high fluoride contamination has its treatment plant lying out of order as the village has had no power supply for well over a month now. Over two dozen children of village Kantahiyapara, of the 31 studying in primary school, have discolored teeth. Now these children have been asked to get bottled water from their home to school.

Situated about 17km west of here on the foothills of Dumarpani hills, Kantahiyapara village was dependent on a dam built on the outskirts for its water needs. About a year ago, a fluoride treatment plant was installed in the primary school premises of the school. “The plant is lying out of order because the village does not have power supply for more than a month now,” said Khagesh Paikra, a teacher.

“Despite several reminders, power supply has still not been restored. Since the peon of the school comes only for about an hour, children are asked to fetch water from the dam on most occasions,” he said.

When contacted, PHE executive engineer Samar Bahadur Singh said that he is aware of the problem and as an immediate solution, PHE has got a dug-well constructed a little further from the school and a hand pump has been fitted over it. As a long term solution, a solar pump will soon be installed in the village and more such pumps are being installed at different places, he said.

PHE department had begun taking steps to fight fluoride and iron contamination in the district about five years ago and state’s first RO plant was installed at Baikunthpur in year 2010-11. This plant acts like water vending machine. Consumers get 5 litres of water by inserting Rs 1 coin into the machine. It was named ‘Korea Neer’. As it turned out to be a huge success, RO plants were installed at 11 more places over the years and eight more are proposed to be installed at various places this year.